THE SOUTHWORTH PLANETARIUM
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43.6667° N                   70.2667° W
Altitude:  10 feet below sea level
Founded January 1970
Julian Date: 24591160.16
2020-2021:  XL


THE DAILY ASTRONOMER
Friday, November 6, 2020
Remote Planetarium 119:   Week 26 Astronomy/Mythology Quiz

*1.  Observations of _______________ variables enable astronomers to
measure the distances to nearby galaxies.*
a.  Algol
b. Cepheid
c.  T-Tauri
d. none of the above

*2.  According to the Hubble law, the greater a galaxy's distance, the
__________________.*
a.  brighter the galaxy will appear
b.  more massive the galaxy will be
c. the greater its recession velocity will be.
d. all of the above

*3.  When a galaxy is moving away from an observer, its light is said to be
____________ shifted.*
a. red
b. blue
c. indigo
d. violet

*4.  Why did Aphrodite hate Psyche?*
a.  Because people were worshipping Psyche instead of Aphrodite
b.  Because Psyche did not sacrifice a white bull to her
c.   Because Psyche stole her girdle
d.   Because Psyche seduced Ares, the god of war

*5. What was unusual about the servants at the palace where Psyche was
delivered by Zephyrus?*
a.  they were all dwarfs
b. they were all giants
c.  they were all invisible.
d. they all looked like Psyche

*6.  The Milky Way Galaxy is approximately _________________ more massive
than the Sun.*
a. 600 billion
b. 900 billion
d.1.5 trillion
d. 37 trillion

*7. Astronomers can measure a galaxy's mass by first measuring
_____________________.*
a. the velocities of the stars within the galaxy
b. the density of stars within 100 light years of Earth
c. the temperatures of the stars within 100 light years of Earth
d. the galaxy's age

*8.  The supermassive black hole at the galaxy's center is approximately
_____________ times more massive than the Sun.*
a.  1 million
b.  2 million
c.  3 million
d.  4 million

*9.  How did Psyche manage to collect enough golden fleece from the flock
of savage rams?*
a.  she gave them all cakes that made them fall asleep
b. the rams left a lot of their fleece along the hedges as they rubbed
against them
c. she slew all of them with Excalibur
d.  an eagle swooped down to collect the fleece for her.

*10. Persephone gave Psyche a small box containing ________________.*
a.  Cerberus' teeth
b.  sorcery that would restore beauty
c.  water from the River Styx
d.  the sweetest wine in the world

*11.  The Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect *causes the _____________________ to
shift wavelengths when it passes through the hot gases within galaxy
clusters.
a. Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation
b. red light in galaxies
c.  blue light in galaxies
d. none of the above

*12.   The phenomenon that causes distant light to be bent and focused
around foreground objects is known as _______________________*
a.   red shift
b.  gravitational lensing
c.  blue shift
d.  the Sunyaey-Zel'dovich effect

*13.  What is the name of our home galactic supercluster?*
a.  Coma
b. Leo
c. Virgo
d. Horologium

*14.  After her abduction by Boreas, Orithyia became the goddess of
________________.*
a.  southwest winds
b.  cold mountain winds
c.  aethereal winds
d.  hyperborean winds

*15.  Why did Socrates not want to bother about determining if the old
mythological tales were valid?*
a.  because he was convinced they were true
b. because he was convinced they were false
c. because he didn't even know himself and thought it was pointless to
concern himself with such matters.
d. both a and b.

*16. ___________________ is the closest thing to a dark galaxy astronomers
have yet found.*
a. Capricornus Dwarf
b. Dragonfly 44
c. The Andromeda Galaxy
d. The Sombrero Galaxy

*17.  If you were in a vessel moving toward a black hole, how would time
pass for you?*
a.  you and everything around you would be moving very slowly
b.  you and everything around you would be moving very quickly
c.  you would notice time passing as usual
d.  you would experience no time at all

*18. Which of the following statements about parallel Universes COULD be
true?*
a.  they might be inaccessible to us
b.  the laws of physics might be profoundly different
c.  life might not exist in them
d. all of the above
e. none of the above

*19.  Hera transformed Callisto into a ____________- because she attracted
the attention of her husband Zeus. *
a.  swan
b. duck
c.  dog
d.  bear

*20.  Callisto and her son Arcas became the constellations _______________
and ______________.*
a.  Ursa Major;  Ursa Minor
b. Canis Major; Canis Minor
c.  Leo; Leo Minor
d. Aquila; Vulpecula



ANSWERS
*1.  Observations of _______________ variables enable astronomers to
measure the distances to nearby galaxies.*
b. Cepheid
A Cepheid variable's luminosity determines its variability period.   The
longer the period, the more luminous the variable star.  By observing a
Cepheid's variability period, an astronomer can determine its intrinsic
brightness (absolute magnitude).  The Cepheid's distance is then determined
by comparing its absolute magnitude with its apparent magnitude.

*2.  According to the Hubble law, the greater a galaxy's distance, the
__________________.*
c. the greater its recession velocity will be.
This direct relation enables astronomers to determine the distances of
distant galaxies.   A galaxy's recession velocity yields information about
its distance.  The more distant the galaxy, the greater its recession
velocity will be.

*3.  When a galaxy is moving away from an observer, its light is said to be
____________ shifted.*
a. red
When a galaxy is moving away from an observer, its light waves are
elongated.  The wavelength increases, which decreases the frequency. The
light shifts toward the lower frequency region, which, in the visible
spectrum, is toward the red end.

*4.  Why did Aphrodite hate Psyche?*
a.  Because people were worshipping Psyche instead of Aphrodite
Although poor Psyche wasn't trying to be worshipped, she was so beautiful
that many of Aphrodite's followers started to worship her instead of the
love goddess.  Aphrodite's temples fell into ruin, much to the goddess'
chagin.

*5. What was unusual about the servants at the palace where Psyche was
delivered by Zephyrus?*
c.  they were all invisible.
Although the servants were perfectly friendly, they were all unseen.
Nobody in the palace was visible except, of course, Psyche.

*6.  The Milky Way Galaxy is approximately _________________ more massive
than the Sun.*
d.1.5 trillion
According to the most recent estimates, the Milky Way Galaxy is 1.5
trillion times more massive than the Sun.   This mass includes all the
stars, planets, gases and even the supermassive black hole within the
galactic nucleus.

*7. Astronomers can measure a galaxy's mass by first measuring
_____________________.*
a. the velocities of the stars within the galaxy
The more massive the galaxy, the greater the velocities of the stars within
that galaxy.  By measuring these speeds, astronomers can determine the mass
of the stars' host galaxy.

*8.  The supermassive black hole at the galaxy's center is approximately
_____________ times more massive than the Sun.*
d.  4 million
Astronomers can measure this black hole's mass by measuring the speeds of
the stars surrounding it.

*9.  How did Psyche manage to collect enough golden fleece from the flock
of savage rams?*
b. the rams left a lot of their fleece along the hedges as they rubbed
against them
Fortunately, Psyche didn't need to approach any of those fearsome animals
to collect the fleece.  She just needed to pick the fleece off the hedges
to collect enough of it.

*10. Persephone gave Psyche a small box containing ________________.*
b.  sorcery that would restore beauty
And that sorcery was simply sleep.  When Psyche opened the box she lapsed
into a deep sleep.

*11.  The Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect *causes the _____________________ to
shift wavelengths when it passes through the hot gases within galaxy
clusters.
a. Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation
This effect enables astronomers to determine the mass of a galaxy cluster.


*12.   The phenomenon that causes distant light to be bent and focused
around foreground objects is known as _______________________*
b.  gravitational lensing
The distant light is bent around the foreground object's space-time
curvature.   The amount of material determines the extent of this lensing
effect.     The mass of galaxy clusters can be approximated by analysis of
this lensing.

*13.  What is the name of our home galactic supercluster?*
c. Virgo
Just making sure you remember!

*14.  After her abduction by Boreas, Orithyia became the goddess of
________________.*
b.  cold mountain winds
Orithyia resisted Boreas' attempts at seduction.     Eventually, Boreas
assumed the form of a dark cloud and abducted her.   Once they became
married, Orithyia became the goddess of cold mountain winds.

*15.  Why did Socrates not want to bother about determining if the old
mythological tales were valid?*
c. because he didn't even know himself and thought it was pointless to
concern himself with such matters.

*16. ___________________ is the closest thing to a dark galaxy astronomers
have yet found.*
b. Dragonfly 44
Almost as massive as the Milky Way Galaxy, Dragonfly 44 contains no
discernible stars and might consist entirely (or almost entirely) of dark
matter.

*17.  If you were in a vessel moving toward a black hole, how would time
pass for you?*
c.  you would notice time passing as usual
Yes!    You would notice time passing as though you were at rest.    A
stationary observer watching you from a distance would see you slow down
and never actually reach the event horizon.

*18. Which of the following statements about parallel Universes COULD be
true?*
d. all of the above
Parallel universes are likely inaccessible and could well be completely
different, from the physical laws governing them to their duration.   They
might be devoid of life entirely, as well.  As of now, we have no idea if
they even exist, let alone anything about them.

*19.  Hera transformed Callisto into a ____________- because she attracted
the attention of her husband Zeus. *
d.  bear
Cruelly, Callisto retained the mind and soul of a human being even after
her transformation.

*20.  Callisto and her son Arcas became the constellations _______________
and ______________.*
a.  Ursa Major;  Ursa Minor
In our sky, these two constellations are circumpolar* and so will always
remain in the night sky.  Mythologically, Hera persuaded Poseidon to not
allow the two constellations to wash in the ocean, so they are prohibited
from ever setting.


*The southern stars in Ursa Major do set at the mid northern latitudes.



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